


We keep this love in a photograph

by bluemadhouse



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Businessman!Niall, I can't remember if there are any other relationships in here, M/M, Model!Louis, Model!Zayn, and they are brief, but if there are they are small, lots of fluff, model!liam, photographer!harry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-06
Updated: 2014-12-06
Packaged: 2018-02-28 09:50:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2727854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluemadhouse/pseuds/bluemadhouse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"It was hard for Harry to admit (mostly to himself) that he had a crush on Louis, at first. Now, four years later after that, his crush hasn’t done anything but get bigger each day, knocking down every single idea that he had at the beginning that it would go away, eventually."</p><p>Based on the tumblr prompt:</p><p>“marvelisticlou:</p><p>AU where Harry is a famous photographer and Louis is his favorite model. Please make this happen”</p>
            </blockquote>





	We keep this love in a photograph

**Author's Note:**

> This is 6K words that basically consist on Harry wanting to take pictures of Louis and it somehow turns out a little bit like 27 Dresses. I regret nothing.
> 
> Also, this is the first story I ever wrote. I wrote it in two days, so I'm sorry if it's quite weird and shitty lol
> 
> Follow me on tumblr:) bluemadhouse.tumblr.com

Harry wakes up when Wendy (his cat) starts licking his left cheek with effort.

The suite he is currently staying in is located right in front of the poolside of a fancy hotel in Miami that he truly can’t remember the name of.

Harry has never been a parties guy, unfortunately. There are weird occasions in which he goes to a party, although most of them are an after-party for a photo exhibition (either his or someone else’s).

Being famous has its perks, he must admit. Just like he does not like parties, he does not like people, so he really loves it when the hotels offer breakfast in bed. He really doesn’t care if the tabloids put him in the spotlight by the name of “asshole” or if some of the models he works with call him “a very, very strict and demanding douchebag”.

He is, in fact, a very strict and selective guy when it comes to photo shoots. It’s not about the clothes or the make-up, but about the models and their body language, their expressions, he says. Harry weirdly works with moody models. If one of them gets angry or stops taking her job seriously, Harry quickly passes to the next one. There is, however, one model guy that he really likes to work with, per say his favorite. Louis Tomlinson.

Louis is like the sunshine that is currently trespassing the beige curtains and creeping into every corner of the suite. He is bright and his blue eyes always shine in a way that warms Harry’s heart like when he takes a photo of an unknown person in the street, doing something special without noticing it. Harry is like that: he notices the small details, the unimportant actions, and he makes them special.

Maybe that’s why he’s gained so much fame.

He sighs and remembers the first time he met Louis Tomlinson, in a bright Autumn day, when Harry was supposedly photographing Zayn Malik to gain some knowledge of the world, being in the cusp of failure.

*

"Hello?" Harry hears a light voice asking. He stands up, leaving the boxes he was carrying on the floor, and finds a short guy standing right besides the cameras. Did Casey really let an unknown guy enter to the studio again?

He raises one of his eyebrows. “Can I help you?”

The guy shifts from side to side, visibly nervous, and starts to pull the sleeves of his blue shirt. “Uh, yeah. You were taking a photo shoot of my friend, Zayn Malik, but something came up and he asked me if I could do it for him?”

"What’s your name?"

The guy blushes. “Right. I’m Louis”

Harry frowns at the guy’s obvious insecurity. “Uh, are you like, a model?”

"Not really, but I’ve been in a few shoots"

"Well…" He thinks about it for a moment. "Let’s see how it turns, then. I’ll lead you to the make up room"

The guy’s face lights up. “Sure. Thanks” Harry notices that the guy’s eyes sparkle, and that they are sky blue.

They walk together through the long hallway, their hands subtly brushing until they reach the big crystal doors with the words “preparation room” written in blue. Harry sees Greta and Lucianne entertainingly speaking.

"Hey, girls" He says and they both turn to look at him. "This is Louis, our model for today. Do you have small and medium pieces of the clothes that we ordered for Zayn?"

"Yes, we bought all the sizes for every piece. Isn’t Zayn coming?" Greta asks, confused.

"Something came up" He just says. "Louis, these girls are Greta and Lucianne. They are going to prepare you today"

"I like your eyes" Lucianne says. "And your eyelashes, although they do need mascara"

Harry shakes his head and, without realizing, he protests. “Don’t use mascara”

Louis and the girls turn to look at him, confused.

Greta narrows her eyes. “We need the mascara to highlight his eyes, Harry”

Harry blushes. “Right, of course” He rambles, and walks awkwardly through the door.

Later in the afternoon, when the pictures are already taken, Harry sends them to his boss to check if they’re right, his thoughts being invaded by the guy with the cute eyes and amazing cheekbones who lost all his doubts and insecurities in the moment that the pictures got taken.

When the photos are published in the Cosmopolitan magazine and when he receives the printed copies, he sends them all but one to Louis. He keeps the photo that he stayed with in his wallet, which he puts inside the back pocket of his ripped jeans.

The rest is history.

*

They both made each other kinda famous, which means, unfortunately, that it’s hard for them to find a space between their schedules to hang out.

The only times that they get to see each other is when Harry takes a photo shoot of Louis (which is at least three times a year). And he has one today.

It was hard for Harry to admit (mostly to himself) that he had a crush on Louis, at first. Now, four years later after that, his crush hasn’t done anything but get bigger each day, knocking down every single idea that he had at the beginning that it would go away, eventually.

That’s why Harry is in Miami, not truly surprising for anyone. He was contacted by a businessman (Neil Horam, or something like that) that wanted to promote his new hotel, and he thought that Harry’s pictures were “ace, man”.

He buttons his sleeveless shirt and puts his bandana, leaving his face totally curls-free, although there are some that get to escape of the pressure that the bandana puts to keep them still. He’s been told that he needs to start covering his arms, that it’s unprofessional to show his many tattoos, and that he seems sixteen years old rather than twenty five but, well, Harry is Harry and when he works he likes to be calm and comfortable.

He gets to the lobby three minutes before the shoot starts and walks towards where Lucianne and Greta are sitting, eating an ice cream and chips.

"Aren’t you supposed to be preparing Louis?" He asks, holding his smoothie in one hand.

Greta huffs. “Some girl that already was here didn’t even let us near Louis”

"She said that she had been personally hired by Niall Horan to do this" Lucianne says, more annoyed than angry.

"What is her name?" He asks, looking around for a sign of Louis.

"Jeannette Pearson"

Harry rolls his eyes. “I know her. She is like that. Next time she tries to get in your way, don’t let her near Louis, or any models. Just tell her to back up” Just when he says that, Louis walks into the lobby, his hair fixed up in a quiff and dressed up in formal black pants and a white button-up. Louis’ eyes sparkle, as always, and he makes his way towards Harry.

"Hey, Styles!" Louis exclaims and hugs Harry. "Long time no see!"

"I see that you grew one centimeter tall" Harry jokes.

Louis hums and playfully punches Harry. “I’m not short. You are just too tall”

He rolls his eyes. “Yeah, keep saying that to yourself if it makes you feel any better” He teases.

"How very dare you" Louis mocks, and he turns his head at a girl that is calling his name. "I should go now. Duty calls. See you later, mate"

When Greta is sure that nobody’s hearing, she asks what Harry has been avoiding ever since the second photo shoot he took of Louis. “When are you going to tell him?”

Harry blushes and shrugs. “Tell him what?”

Lucianne throws a chip at him. “Don’t act stupid, my friend. Your heart eyes are so sickening that I want to throw up rainbows”

Harry doesn’t hesitate when he protests. “That’s not true”

Greta smirks. “Oh, but it is. He totally likes you”

"He doesn’t. Besides, I don’t fancy him, either"

Greta rolls her eyes. “Stop hiding behind those tattoos and the bad boy image, Styles. You can’t fool me”

"Yeah, stop being a prick" Lucianne replies, her mouth full of half-eaten chips. Harry scrunches his nose and shakes his head.

"You’re disgusting" Greta groans, having read Harry’s mind perfectly. Lucianne just shows them her tongue and proceeds to eat Greta’s chips, ignoring her protests.

*

Skinny jeans are not uncomfortable most of the time, or that’s what Harry thinks, at least, but he might as well face the fact that it was a bad idea to wear them in a hot, summer day in Miami when he’s about to photograph Louis Tomlinson.

"Okay, now, can you lay down on the bed and hug the pillow?" Harry asks, searching for the right angle.

Louis does as he’s told. “Like this?”

"Yes, close to your chest. Alright, keep a serious face and close your eyes" He replies, getting his camera ready. "Three, two, one…" The click echoes in the suite. "The next pictures take place in the poolside"

"Oh, I don’t know" Louis hugs the pillow tightly. "This bed is quite comfortable. I think I’ll stay here and take a nap"

Harry rolls his eyes. “You can do that later, Sleeping Beauty. We have work to do, now get your lazy arse up of that bed and lead it to the poolside” He chimes and starts picking up his equipment, which is, luckily, small enough to fit in a carry-on suitcase.

Louis scowls. “Don’t you think it gets tiring?”

Harry closes the case and looks up to glance at Louis, confused. “What?”

"All this" Louis sighs. "The photos, the make up, the uncomfortable clothes, the gossip. Like. Really, what is it so special about this all?"

Harry lifts the carry-on and charges it on his shoulder. “It does get tiring, but it’s beautiful, somehow. It’s nice to see everyone’s expressions, you know?”

Louis gulps and stares at the ceiling, leaving the pillow on the bed. “I suppose so”

"Well…" Harry clears his throat, not really sure of what to say. "I think it’s time to continue"

*

All the other models are already waiting when they get to the pool, most of them chatting and drinking the Piña Colada that they’ve been offered by the staff.

He recognizes some of them. There’s Zayn, Jessica, Jade… they are nice models, or so he notices. Louis walks over to them, and Harry goes straight to the small studio located right in the entrance of the poolside.

He left the small equipment in his suite, seeing as he needs bigger cameras for a shoot in the sun. All that he needs is already there, with some people ready to help. He walks and checks the pictures one by one.

Greta and Lucianne are with a group of other make up artists, all of them busy doing someone’s hair or choosing the right clothes. He greets them with a wave of his hand and makes his way towards the blonde perky guy, the owner of the hotel. The guy’s eyes crinkle as he smiles.

"Hey, man! How’s the shoot going so far?" He asks.

Harry smiles and turns his camera off. “It’s cool, mate. I already took pictures in the lobby, the suites and the only thing that lasts is the poolside. Are there any other places you want me to take pictures in?”

"Nah, I think that’s all. How’s the video going?"

"That’s Liam’s part, but he just needs to record the beach and it’s all done, I think"

Niall nods. “Thanks so much, mate, really. I’m shit at all this promotion stuff. And sorry, I knew that this was supposed to be your vacation season”

Harry shrugs. “It’s really nothing. I do have fun in photo shoots” He admits.

"Did you bring any company?" Niall raises his eyebrows playfully.

"If my cat counts as company, then yeah, I did" He laughs.

"You brought your cat all the way from London to Miami?" Niall’s eyes widen at the thought.

Harry blushes. “Yeah. I mean, I don’t really go out too much, and Wendy is like my only babe”

Niall laughs. “That’s sad” He jokes.

"Yeah, it’s quite heart-breaking" Harry chuckles.

Sad, indeed.

*

Two hours and eighty nine pictures later, Harry feels like passing out right there under the sun.

Many models were just playing most of the time, which had him angry and annoyed most of the time that the photo shoot lasted. He wipes the sweat that’s falling over his forehead and takes a sip from his lemonade while watching the models having fun in the pool. Even Liam went for a swim.

Greta and Lucianne are lying on the grass, taking selfies and completely ignoring him.

When he first met them, he thought that they were girlfriends, but Lucianne is pretty much straight and, although Greta doesn’t put labels to anything, she does prefer dick. Also, there’s the fact that they’re cousins.

He stands up to get to his suite, yearning to take a shower when Louis, who is in the jacuzzi with Zayn and Liam, calls his name.

"Hey, Styles" Louis grins. "Fancy a movie night with the lads and me at eight?"

Harry smiles, and he hears Greta and Lucianne quietly squeal. “Sure. Where?”

"At my suite. Number 301" Zayn chimes. "The pizza goes on my count"

Harry nods. “Alright. Do I bring some beer?”

"That would be great" Liam replies.

"See you, then" He says and goes to the elevator.

One minute later, he receives a text from Greta. As he opens it, he can’t help but to grin.

Greta :))<3:

i thought that you weren’t a ‘lads night’ kind of guy aha:) xx

*

He really does try not to be nervous, but he can’t. He never follows his own advice. He kind of hates horror movies, too, and, unfortunately for him, all the movies that the lads chose are horror movies.

Damn him and his bad habit of being late.

He takes a sip from his beer and shifts nervously on his sit while watching the screen, jumping a bit when the blonde girl gets violently murdered by the psycho.

"You okay, Styles?" Louis asks, chuckling.

"Yeah, I… my phone just vibrated"

Zayn snorts. “And you keep your phone right under your arse or what?” Liam and Louis laugh.

Harry blushes, but doesn’t say anything. He pretends not to notice the way that Louis keeps eyeing him for the whole night.

And if someone notices Harry jumping every time that someone gets killed, well, no one says a thing.

*

"Hey, I wanted to go sightseeing today. Do you all want to come ?" Liam asks when they wake up. "It may be fun, Harry. You can take pictures"

"Sounds good" Zayn replies, chewing his chocolate.

"I have nothing better to do, so" Louis says.

Harry nods. “I was planning on doing the same, mate. It feels good to know that I won’t get lost”

*

The thing is, he does get lost. With Louis.

The four of them were walking together until Louis stopped in front of a store to see the clothes and Harry was taking pictures, not noticing when Liam and Zayn left. Neither of them have an idea of where they are. Louis’ phone is discharged and Harry doesn’t have Liam nor Zayn’s number. The good thing is that they haven’t been mobbed. Yet.

"I don’t know about you" Louis says, "but I’m too hungry to keep walking. It’s been two hours, Harry"

"Yeah, I’m hungry too" Harry puts his bandana on his hair, trying to fix it. "I saw a café two blocks behind. It looks nice"

Louis hums. “We better get there, then”

It takes them approximately fifteen minutes. They both sigh in relief when a wave of cool air invades them.

"I’m pretty sure that we smell like old cheese, now" Harry jokes.

Louis pretends to be offended. “Oi! Mind you, I smell like roses and A&F perfume”

"That’s a shitty perfume"

"It is not!" Louis whines.

Harry sits and laughs. “Everybody uses that perfume in America. I can’t believe that you’re one of those guys. I lost my faith in you” He mocks again.

Louis crosses his arms. “And which perfume do you use, Mr. Styles?” He asks, defiantly.

Harry smirks. “I’m loyal to Channel”

"And you tell me that I use an overrated cologne" Louis scoffs, jokingly. "You’re like, a snob"

"I don’t call ‘’being a snob’’ the fact that I have a great taste when it comes to the quality in a product, I call it ‘class’ " He corrects.

"You cheeky snob" Louis says, biting a cookie of the basket that’s on the center of the table and reading the menu.

"May I take your order?" A brunette young waiter asks, her eyes (unsurprisingly) wide in awe.

"Yes, please. I’ll take the Caesar Salad and a pineapple smoothie" Louis requests, studying the menu.

"I’d like to try the Club Sandwich and a caramel mocha frappe" Harry says, saying the first thing that he reads.

"On its way" The girl says, and stares at them for a few seconds before heading back to the counter, shaking her head.

"I hope she doesn’t tell" Louis plays with a napkin in a nervous way that Harry knows well. He continues when he sees Harry’s frown. "That we’re here, I mean"

Harry’s face softens. Although he is indeed quite famous himself, he’s just been mobbed once. Not pretty, not pretty at all. “I can’t imagine how hard it is” He replies, and notices the waiter walking to his and Louis’ table with their drinks.

"A pineapple smoothie and a caramel mocha frappe" She hands the drinks to them.

"Thanks" They both say and take them.

Louis’ cheeks are red from the walk, and his perfectly made quiff is now a mess, but Harry truly does prefer to see Louis that way.

"So, what’s your deal? Besides from photography, obviously" Louis asks.

Harry is mesmerized for a minute before he replies. “Well, I’m a bit into music”

Louis grins. “Really? That’s cool! I never really planned to be a model, you know. I always wanted to make it in the music industry or to be an actor”

Harry raises his eyebrows in interest. “And why didn’t you?”

"Well, I don’t sing that good to make it. And, as for the actor thing, I just didn’t have enough time, I guess" He shrugs it off. "And you? On a scale of me to Beyoncé, how good are you?"

Harry chuckles, helplessly. “I’m not that good, either”

"Oh, come on. That raspy good has to help you in something" Louis insists, smiling.

"Oh my God, are you for real?" He asks, still smiling. "The roughness in my voice is what ruins all my chances of making it into the music industry"

Louis shakes his head. “I reject that by the hand”

"You haven’t even heard me sing once"

"You’ll have to sing to me so I can confirm my theory, then" Louis smirks.

"Never in a million years"

"Oh, I’ll get it out of you someday, Styles" He says and takes a sip of his smoothie.

"What did you mean yesterday?" Harry asks, without thinking. Louis looks up, his face lit up by the surprise.

"About what?"

Harry blushes. “When you said those things about the gossip and all”

"Oh" Louis is not blushing, but his ears are red. "I just… It gets exhausting for me to deal with it"

"With modeling?" Harry frowns in confusion.

"With the fame, but modeling gets hard, too" Louis replies. "The fame, because most of the things that the tabloids say about me are fake. I can’t handle the pressure that the fans put in me. And the modeling, because it’s just not who I am"

Harry nods, understanding. “I couldn’t handle my job if I didn’t like it”

"I like my job" Louis admits. "There’s just too much pressure into turning me to be someone that I’m not" He sighs and looks down. "It’s just one mistake. One mistake and it marks you forever. Everybody remembers it and, no matter all the good things that you do, they’ll still point at you and remind you all the bad things that you once did"

"Everyone gets the wrong idea of you" Harry agrees.

"And they stay with that idea forever"

"But maybe it’s okay, in a bizarre way, you know?" Harry says, trying to cheer Louis up. "Never forget your problems, ‘cause they make you be who you are?"

Louis chuckles. “You’re a special one, Styles” He smirks. “But that’s an overrated quote” He points out and drinks another sip of his smoothie.

Harry giggles and turns his camera on to take a picture. At the sound of the click, Louis looks up.

"Did you just take me a picture?" He narrows his eyes, but Harry sees the shadow of a grin on Louis’ lips.

"I couldn’t resist" Harry says, smirking.

Louis just raises an eyebrow, and before he keeps drinking his smoothie, he says, “I’m watching you”

Harry snorts and laughs.

*

Two and a half hours after they entered the café, they finally decide to get out of it because their buttocks started to get sore.

"But really" Louis says, after a fit of laughter attacked him. "Did you see him? He was actually wearing high-waisted shorts and a beanie"

Harry shakes his head, but smiles anyways. “Yes, Louis, for the fifth time, I saw him”

"I’d like to shag him" Louis continues.

Harry’s eyes widen in horror, completely ignoring the fact that Louis just outed himself. “Would you, really?”

Louis glares at him for a second before another fit of laughter bubbles in his throat. “Oh my god, your face!”

Harry frowns. “You almost gave me a heart attack”

They keep walking, Louis’ laugh echoing the alley they are just passing by.

Harry takes another picture.

They walk by small stores and, although his legs are really sore (he blames the effort, not his lack of exercise). Harry manages to take more pictures of Louis doing stupid (but irremediably cute) things.

Louis in a pink wig, Louis eating a lollipop, Louis hidden in between the clothes of the stores they see, Louis perched up in Ronald McDonald’s lap… He also got to take some pictures of Louis with lots of fans, doing faces and sticking their tongues out.

There are some people glaring at them, some of them angrily staring, some laughing and some recognizing them but not being brave enough to ask for a picture.

Harry’s camera memory it’s already full by four o’clock, and so is his heart.

*

Niall invites them to the opening cruise party, saying that he didn’t really invite too many people, but to say that he was lying would be an understatement.

The cruise is crowded, and Harry is sure that it’s going to sink, eventually. He truly feels like throwing up. He is sitting in a table close to the edge of the cruise, and he curses, once again, his bad habit of being late, even though he’s pretty sure that even if he’d gotten into the party on time, the cruise would’ve been already crowded, anyways.

He holds a shriek when he feels a hand touching his shoulder.

"You look sick, man" Zayn says.

Louis, who just got there, smirks. “Is little Harry scared of the water?”

Liam slaps Louis’ arm when he sees Harry’s face. Harry shrugs it off. “It’s not the water. I’m just not used to being around so many people”

"I can understand that" Zayn agrees. "It took me a while to handle all the attention I got"

"Would you guys like some Piña Colada?" A waiter asks, and they all turn their attention to him.

"Yes, please" Louis replies. The waiter hands them the drinks and walks away.

"We never asked you guys where did you go the other day" Liam suddenly says.

Zayn nods. “We were a bit scared, to be honest”

"You were scared?!" Louis almost yells. "We were lost, and you guys left us there!"

Zayn rolls his eyes. “Oh, stop being a drama queen”

"It’s in his nature" Harry intervenes, grinning.

Louis raises his eyebrows. “I thought that we were friends, Styles. You just broke my heart”

"I prefer Zayn" Harry says, patting Zayn’s head. Louis pouts.

"Alright, lovebugs, enough" Liam interferes. "Louis here is about to commit murder in second grade"

"Now I understand why people say not to trust your friends" Louis shakes his head. "They may turn their backs at you when you least expect it"

Zayn snorts. “Drama queen”

Harry ignores them and sits on the spot next to Louis.

The time passes by quickly, much to Harry’s happiness yet annoyance, judging the fact that he barely sees Louis.

Louis squeezes Harry’s leg under the table and leans down to whisper in his ear. “Hey, I need to talk to you. Do you think that we can sneak without the guys’ noticing?”

Harry watches the lads mindfully and nods a few seconds later. “I don’t think that they’ll notice”

They both stand up and barge into the massive crowd of people dressed in fancy dresses and weird hairstyles. They stop when they find a less crowded spot in the cruise.

Harry doesn’t really know what to say, so he goes straight to the point. “What do you need to tell me?” He asks, and he didn’t really mean for it to come out that rough, but doesn’t say anything else.

Louis doesn’t answer. Instead, he turns his back and leans on the railing, staring at the sea. Harry’s heart tightens in worry for it.

The awkward silence is broken by the sound of the water collide in small, different waves.

"I think that I like you" Louis says, and Harry barely hears him, but he still catches up Louis’ words perfectly. "Why wouldn’t you stay out of my mind, if I didn’t?" He turns to face him, and Harry’s heart skips a beat. "I don’t know what it was that caught my eyes, but ever since I met you, I’ve been dreading the feelings that you wake up in me"

Harry stares at him in awe, unable to form a word correctly.

"Please say something" Louis whispers, his blue eyes filled with worry.

Harry opens and closes his mouth like a fish, his eyes wide open. He blinks and, slowly, a smile creeps into his face. “You idiot” He says. Louis frowns.

"What?"

"Of course I like you back!" Harry exclaims. "And here I was thinking that it was obvious for everyone, you oblivious idiot"

Louis’ eyes sparkle (and Harry truly can number the times that Louis’ eyes have sparkled in his presence and he still doesn’t get bored of it) and he smiles. “Oh, thank god” He sighs. “Can I kiss you now?”

"And you still ask?" Harry anxiously replies.

Their lips subtly touch, and Harry feels like a million fireworks are exploding in his stomach.

They are both smiling, and Harry takes a picture, of course.

*

Harry smiles when he sees that Louis fell asleep, his face calm and soft, his breath barely echoing in the walls.

His thoughts get interrupted by the sound of his phone, and when he lifts it up from the ground, he scrunches his head, dazzled by the sudden light.

He barely manages to read the message.

Niall Horan:

Hey, man! Hope that you had a good time in the cruise. Please send the photos as soon as possible to Olivia, my secretary:)

He frowns and stands up to get his laptop, suddenly feeling tired and sleepy. He plugs the memory, pastes all the photos in a file and sends them to Olivia’s e-mail without any hesitation.

*

On Sunday, seeing as it’s July 4th, they make a picnic and stay in the park to see the fireworks. The place is full of people, and it’s nearly impossible to find an empty spot for the four of them to sit, and, also, Louis and Zayn see themselves forced to go with their lifeguards for safety.

It’s quite uncomfortable, it’s the thing. Both man stay behind them the whole time, and they don’t even smile. Harry truly wonders if they even blink under the sunglasses.

He’s about to ask the lifeguards their names when Zayn approaches them with his sixth churro of the day in hand. “These are made by angels, I swear” He mumbles, biting it and leaving a sugar stain on his cheek.

Liam grins and leans down. “You have sugar on your face”

Zayn shifts from the ground. “Do you have a napkin?”

Liam shakes his head. “Did you use it for cleaning your sit, again?”

"I didn’t" Zayn blushes. Liam rolls his eyes and hands him his napkin. "Thanks, love"

Harry glances at them and narrows his eyes. “Are you guys together?”

Zayn chuckles and Liam just snorts. Louis smiles and holds Harry’s bicep. “Don’t even bother in asking. They never reply”

They don’t kiss or hold hands that day, Harry completely understanding Louis. He’d be a bit afraid, too.

When he got out of the closet, his family was supportive, and so were his friends, but the media wasn’t. He spent a month without talking about it in any interviews: people just took it too personal. That was the weird thing: he wasn’t that famous, and people still cared. He can’t even imagine how it would be for Louis.

Sighing, he crosses his legs and listens to the conversation developing between the guys.

The lifeguards still have their sunglasses on.

*

They both wake up at two in the afternoon due to the fact that the sunlight is, once again, trespassing the curtains. Neither of them complains about it, but they do wonder how did Wendy (who is sleeping in the middle of the bed) got out of the bathroom.

"Good morning" He greets and playfully pecks Louis on his nose.

Louis opens his eyes and smiles. “Hello”

"Did you sleep well?"

"Better than ever" Louis says and puts the covers away.

"Do you want to eat breakfast?"

"More like lunch" Louis replies, chuckling.

"It’s breakfast for me" Harry says, getting up and fixing his hair. "I’ll just take a shower"

"Sure. I’ll take a shower in the other bathroom. I kind of stink"

"Really? I thought that you smelled like roses and A&F perfume" Harry teases, smirking. Louis throws a pillow at him.

"I smell like a mix of those and sweat" He groans.

"You smell like rotten cheese"

"Oh, Jesus. Why do I even like you?"

*

The restaurant is not full, but it’s not empty, either.

They decided not to go to the hotel’s restaurant because they knew that it would be too crowded, and they preferred to know another place in Miami, so they just drove and kind of got to Pablo’s Café, a nice place in the center of the city.

The old waiter is serving them their coffees, and they are just sitting there, talking about practically nothing when they hear someone scoff.

"Is that the gay model?" A guy asks.

"Every single male model is gay, Dean"

Louis’ smile freezes and he turns to search for the guys who said those things. Harry’s hand stops him, and Louis just sits down again and looks down.

"Excuse me" The waiter says. "Would you like to read today’s newspaper?"

Harry is too busy staring worriedly at Louis, but he nods. A minute later, the waiter comes backs and puts one paper in front of Louis and another one in front of Harry.

Louis picks it up and starts to go through the pages, thoughtfully. Harry doesn’t even touch his paper, still waiting for Louis to talk.

Suddenly, Louis frowns, his mouth opens and his eyes widen in horror, looking from the paper to Harry repeatedly.

"Lou?" Harry asks, confused.

"You fucking son of a bitch" Louis mumbles, shaking his head, and then staring angrily at Harry. "You sent them the pictures of you and me?"

"What?"

"Oh my god" Louis goes backwards, his face blank. "Did you use me for fame?"

"What?! Lou- I would never do that!" Harry exclaims, surprised.

"I can’t fucking believe it"

"What are you even talking about?"

Louis throws the newspaper to Harry’s face. “About this, you asshole” Louis wipes the sweat from his forehead. “I believed it for a moment, you know” He says, his eyes filled up with tears. “I really thought that I could trust you” He murmurs and walks away, leaving Harry as confused (if not more) than before.

When he looks down, he understands. Right there, on top of the page, written in big, black letters it reads:

"Louis Tomlinson, caught in gay affair?"

Below the headline, is the picture that Harry took two nights before of them kissing.

*

Louis doesn’t answer the phone nor his door, and after sixteen calls and twenty one messages, he stops trying, already feeling lost.

He receives a text from Zayn, and Harry detects every single kind of existent threat in just nine words.

Z. Malik:

I hope that you burn in hell you motherfucker

He cancels the reservations he did for the whole week, and he books a flight for the next day.

He feels Greta’s stare burning in his back the whole time, but he ignores her and leaves all the silent questions that she has unanswered.

*

"Man the fuck up" Greta says after three days of struggling to get Harry out of his flat in London.

"Can you bring some milk?" He asks, ignoring her.

Greta glares at him. “I’ll hit you with your most expensive camera and then I’ll throw it to the wall”

"You won’t. You love it"

"But it’s not mine" Greta cleans the table and sits on it. "You can’t stay like this forever, Harry. You stopped trying too fast"

"I called him sixteen times in-"

"In only one day, I know, but just imagine how he feels" She sighs. "Do you remember how hard it was when you came out?"

"Yeah" He quietly says, staring at the plate full of food that’s in front of him, refusing to look Greta right in the eye.

"You shut us all down" She continues. "You stayed in your own world, and you didn’t let anyone near you, even though you knew that we would’ve always been there"

Harry shrugs. “I don’t understand what you’re trying to say”

Greta shakes her head. “Nevermind” She stands up and grabs her phone. “I’m going out”

She’s out of the flat before he can react.

*

Louis washes his face for the fourth time and curses when he notices that he still has make up and mascara stains all over his face.

In other days, he would’ve sighed and shake his head, leaning down to wash it again, but he’s not in the mood today. He huffs and passes a hand through his hair desperately.

After five more minutes of trying, he gets out of the bathroom, and jumps in surprise when he finds himself face to face with the familiar brunette girl.

He goes backwards, still a bit surprised. “Greta?”

She stays smooth. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

Louis frowns and doubts for a second. “Listen, if Harry sent you here-“

"He didn’t" Greta interrupts. "I came on my count"

Louis just nods. “We can talk outside”

They both sit down in a bench when they get there, the silence apparently unbreakable.

"How did you know where I was?" Louis asks, glancing at her.

"My friend Lou told me that she was excited because she’d be doing your make up today"

Louis narrows his eyes, but doesn’t say a thing. Greta takes a long breath.

"Listen, what I have to say won’t waste too much of your time" She says. "I just wanted to tell you that you should listen to Harry"

Louis shrugs. “I don’t care”

"Well, you should" She sighs. "I do accept that Harry was an idiot when he sent the pictures, but it was a mistake"

"I don’t think that it was a mistake" Louis laughs, bitterly. "No one makes a mistake like that"

"Mistakes are stupid" Greta turns to look at him. "Maybe that’s why we learn so much from them. I’m not asking you to forgive him, I’m just asking for you to give him a chance to explain, because, let me tell you, although Harry sent those pictures, you are acting way more immaturely at ignoring him" She gently touches his arm. "What are you so afraid of?"

Louis doesn’t answer, but Greta doesn’t need his reply. She just says ‘goodbye’ and walks to her car, leaving a baffled Louis staring at the ground.

*

He decides to call Harry two days later, when he’s sure that he gathered all the courage to finally speak to him.

He’s sweating as he types the numbers in his phone, and he’s almost crying in relief when Harry answers.

"Louis?" Harry says, his voice trembling, as if he’s afraid that Louis is going to hang up.

Louis closes his eyes, feeling the same warmness that he feels every time that he hears Harry’s voice. “Hey”

"I’m so sorry" Harry chokes, and Louis is pretty sure that he’s about to cry. "I didn’t mean to"

"It’s okay" He says, playing with the pen with his fingers. "I think that we should see each other to talk about it"

Harry sighs at the other side of the phone. Louis knows that he’s nodding, and he smiles in a bitter and fondly way. “Sorry. Yeah, I think so, too. Do you want me to go to your flat?”

Louis breathes, nervously. “No, I can go to your studio, if that’s okay”

"That’s perfect" Harry answers.

When the call ends, Louis rubs his fingers on his temples, knowing that he made the right choice.

*

They both stare at each other for what it seems like a lifetime, their words stuck in their throats.

Harry feels like screaming out his lungs, or like hugging Louis until neither of them can breathe, but his arms are numb and he can’t say a thing.

Finally, Louis looks up.

"Hi, Harry"

Harry’s breath escapes from his lungs. “Hello” His voice comes out in what seems like a shriek. Louis feels a chill running through his back. “I swear that I didn’t mean it” Harry says. “I sent them the pictures, but it was the wrong file. It was never my intention to hurt you”

"It’s okay" Louis mutters.

"No, it’s not" He says. "No one should ever go out of the closet by force"

"It was a mistake, Harry"

Harry looks up. “Louis, even if it was, I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry, and even though I’m not ready to fall in love, i’m sure that I will fall for you, eventually. I can’t give you a lot of things, I can’t assure you that I won’t screw up again, because I know that I will, and i’m fearful”

Louis shakes his head, his eyes watering. “I don’t want a lot of things, Harry” He whispers. “I just want to be with you”

Harry swallows the lump in his throat. “Can I kiss you now?”

Louis breathes and tearfully smiles. “You better”

Harry takes a picture.


End file.
